Local real estate agent Stephanie Mallios said Maplewood – like many towns in New Jersey – has had to reevaluate property because so many people appealed their property taxes as the real estate market declined. The successful appeals then left huge holes in local budgets.

“They have to have a budget, so if people are reducing the budget by successfully appealing their taxes, then the shortfall has to be made up somehow,” Mallios said.

People have certainly been appealing their taxes. According to the Essex County tax assessor, the number of property tax appeals has gone from 2,000 in 2008 to 7,200 this year.

In order to appeal, homeowners need to prove the value of their home is less than the assessed value. They can hire an attorney or file the paperwork themselves.

“Everybody thinks of appealing,” said Peggy Barnett of South Orange.

“We’re already almost at the limit of our tax, being able to carry our property taxes,” Maplewood resident Dean Nielsen said.

Over 74,000 property tax appeals were filed in New Jersey this year, the most since 1992, and officials expect that number to rise.

Appeals can be filed starting on Jan. 10 and as late as April 1 or May 1, depending on the locality.

Marcia Kramer joined CBS 2 in 1990 as an investigative and political reporter. Prior to CBS 2, she was the City Hall bureau chief at the New York Daily News.
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One Comment

This article may have just unintentionally pointed out the root of the problem in the very first sentence!

“…[T]hey’re reevaluating all of the town’s property.” The implication here, of course, is obvious; Private property is not private. It is collective. And homeowners are renters.

Readers can, and likely will, completely disagree with it, but the simple truth is that we have lost our way. This being the case, I’m hard pressed to think that we are not getting just what we deserve.